Sangrur man’s kin want travel agent in jail for fraud

DHURI (SANGRUR) : The family of Pritpal Sharma (55), one of the 39 Indian workers who were killed in Iraq and was cremated at his native town Dhuri on Tuesday, wants action against the travel agent who sent him on seven-day visa by lying that it was two-year work permit.

“A long wait ended today. I am not seeking any more compensation from the government. But the travel agent who sent my husband to Iraq should be behind bars,” said Pritpal’s wife Raj Rani (53).

Sharma, who spent Rs 2.5 lakh to get visa in 2011, had left his wife and two children, Neeraj Sharma (now 28) and Diksha (18) to work in Iraq seven years ago.

“After spending a week in Iraq my father came to know that he had only seven-day visa. He called us and we approached the agent, but to no avail. We repeatedly requested him for help but he refused to do anything and left the business later,” said Neeraj.

“The government should ensure that such incidents do not ruin more lives,” he said.

Dhuri MLA Dalvir Singh Goldy and his Sangrur counterpart MLA Vijay Inder Singla besides administration and police officials attended the funeral. Singla lashed out at minister of state of external affairs VK Singh for his remark that “compensation is not like distributing biscuits” and sought apology from him. “The central government should provide compensation to these families who have their breadwinners,” said Singla.

HOSHIARPUR MAN CREMATED

In Hoshiarpur, the mortal remains of one of the victims Kamaljit reached Chhauni Kalan village on Tuesday morning. His mother Santosh Kumari and wife Harvinder Kaur broke down on seeing the remains in the casket.

The deceased’s seven-year old son Manpreet Singh lit the funeral pyre. His daughter Simarpreet Kaur stood holding her mother’s hand. She was just 15 days old when Kamaljit had left for Iraq in 2014 with dreams of a better future for his children.

Former Rajya Sabha member Avinash Rai Khanna, local MLA Sunder Sham Arora, sub divisional magistrate Jatinder Jorwal attended the last rites.

Kamaljit’s mortal remains had reached the city on Monday but it being late, these were kept in the civil hospital for the night. The remains were taken to his home for about an hour after which cremation was held at the village crematorium. The casket was opened despite health warnings by the administration as the family members wanted to have a glimpse.

Deceased’s brother Parwinder Singh said a bag accompanying the relics contained Kamaljit’s clothes and shoes.

“We have nothing to say. Everything is over now,” he sobbed.

FAMILY SAYS THE AGENT SENT VICTIM PRITPAL SHARMA ON 7DAY VISA CLAIMING IT WAS A 2YEAR WORK PERMIT